ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF

A widening gap has emerged between Israeli and American Jews over whether Israeli government policy contributes to the rise in global antisemitism, according to the September 2026 Jewish People Voice Index published by the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI) on Thursday.

The findings showed that despite a continued sense of partnership and strong cultural connection, a growing share of engaged American Jews attribute waves of antisemitism around the world to policies pursued by the Israeli government.

According to the index, two out of five American Jews, 39%, said Israeli government policy contributes "to a large extent" to the increase in antisemitism worldwide, a sharp rise from 31% who held that view in September 2025.

Another 35% said Israeli policy contributes "to some extent," while only 23% rejected any connection between the two, down substantially from 32% a year earlier.

Among Israeli Jews, however, the picture was nearly the reverse. Data from the Israeli Society Index showed that 44% of Israeli Jews rejected any link between state policy and antisemitism, while only 28% said policy contributes to it to a large extent.

Thousands of Jewish and Israeli Americans participate in the annual Israel Day Parade, the world’s largest pro-Israel parade, on May 31, in New York City. Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who did not attend the march, is the first New York mayor not to do so.
Thousands of Jewish and Israeli Americans participate in the annual Israel Day Parade, the world’s largest pro-Israel parade, on May 31, in New York City. Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who did not attend the march, is the first New York mayor not to do so. (credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

The divide in perceptions also translated directly into differing views over whether Israel should change its policies in response to antisemitism.

Some 28% of American Jews surveyed said Israel should change its policies "to a large extent" because of the waves of antisemitism, up from 21% last year. Among Israeli Jews, only 17% supported such a change.

At the same time, 57% of Israeli Jews said policy should not be changed at all, compared with 37% of American Jews.

Cautious optimism, less pessimism about Israel’s future

Ahead of Rosh Hashanah 5787, the index also examined attitudes toward Israel’s future.

Israeli Jews proved considerably more optimistic, with 43% predicting a positive future for the country, compared with only 19% of American Jews.

At the same time, the American results showed some recovery from last year’s low point. In September 2025, 38% of American Jews said Israel was in a "decline that will continue." That figure fell to 25% this year, nearly identical to the 24% recorded among Israeli Jews.

Uncertainty was also notably higher among American Jews. Some 16% said they did not know how to assess Israel’s situation, compared with just 3% of Israeli Jews.

The political divide among US Jews was reflected clearly in the findings. Among respondents who described themselves as strongly conservative, 51% expressed substantial optimism about Israel’s future.

Among those identifying as strongly liberal, however, the share of optimists fell to just 4%, while half, 50%, said they feared a continued decline.

Language as a bridge: Hebrew, Yiddish and community connection

On the cultural level, the index examined proficiency in Jewish languages among Jews who have a connection to the community, described in the survey as "engaged."

The data showed that half know hundreds of Hebrew words or more. Some 13% said they speak Hebrew fluently, 15% said they know at least 1,000 words, and 22% said they know hundreds of words.

Only 2% said they did not know a single word of Hebrew.

Yiddish had a more modest standing. Some 18% said they knew at least several hundred words, while the largest group, 36%, said they knew only dozens of words.

The survey found a direct correlation between Hebrew proficiency and the strength of respondents’ connection to Israel.

Among Jews who had previously lived in Israel, half said they spoke Hebrew fluently, and another 25% knew at least 1,000 words. Among those who had never visited Israel, one-third (33%) knew only a few words.

A significant correlation was also found with religious affiliation. All haredi (ultra-Orthodox) respondents (100%) and 76% of Orthodox respondents knew hundreds of Hebrew words or more, compared with only 28% of Reform Jews. A similar trend emerged for Yiddish.

JPPI President Prof. Yedidia Stern said the findings illustrated that ties between Israel and Diaspora Jewry were not one-dimensional.

"The index illustrates that the relationship between Israel and Diaspora Jewry is not one-dimensional. On the one hand, we are seeing a widening of the gap in perceptions regarding the connection between Israeli government policy and antisemitism; on the other hand, Jews in the US are less pessimistic about the future of the state compared with last year, and the Hebrew language continues to be a central component of their identity. The conclusion is that one must know how to distinguish between criticism of government policy and the degree of connection, affinity, and commitment to Israel and Jewish identity," Stern said.

JPPI’s Jewish People Voice Index was conducted by institute fellows Shmuel Rosner, Noah Slepkov and Yael Levinovsky, under the statistical supervision of Prof. David Steinberg.